Morituri te Salutant
by alimo1
Summary: Those about to die salute you. Originally posted on Mibba as three separate stories: Ars Morendi, Memento Mori and Bella Morte.
1. Prologue

_They were beautiful: three of each gender. They walked into Dreamland like they owned the place. Each man was in a flashy crisp white suit and fedoras whose bands matched their partners' dresses. A blonde with curly golden locks and a white cloche hat and a deep pink tight fit knee length dress was holding onto the tallest of the bunch. The shortest had a chin length ebony bob that hugged her face and a black flashy dress and held on to a man whose ginger locks were peaking from the bottom. The final couple, a woman with scarlet hair and another blonde, was the most conservative of the group. The woman was wearing a crisp white dress and a black jacket and her man with a black band._

_The women mentioned something to their partners and the men left their sides. The blonde man hesitated searching the room and glancing quickly in my direction before continuing on. He whispered something to his scarlet haired partner before following after the two other men. The scarlet haired woman looked around as if listening to everyone in the room. She looked at me then to the blonde woman and whispered something before the three women turned to look at me. The blonde smiled. A smile that left a harsh emotional ball in the pit of my stomach. One I that I wish I listened to: fear._


	2. Alaska

I was peering out my second story window at the beauty of the forest scenery. The morning sun was barely peaking out from behind the thick grey clouds and cast sparse rays down toward our home. Snow was threatening to fall from the heavens. I could hear my family moving around down stairs: Christopher getting his ass handed to him in chess by Solomon, Edwin and Elsie talking on the couch about something on the morning news, Aurora finishing a tune on her grand piano and Emily making her way up the stairs.

"Blythe?" She knocked before popping her blonde head into my room.

"Hmm?" I turned to acknowledge her.

"Have you seen anything?" she asked almost hopeful that I did.

I was silent for a moment. "Can you be specific?"

"Have you seen anything new about _them_?" she asked after sighing.

"Not anything I haven't already told you." I said bluntly. It was the truth. I had already told her about their new members: a former human, a half breed, and a shape shifter. I told her about the stand off between them and the police. I had seen everything.

"Oh." She frowned.

"But if I see anything new, I'll let you know," I gave her a small smile. She returned the smile and left just as quick as she came. As soon as she was down stairs, I walked over to my closet to get dressed in a pair of skinny jeans and a black plaid shirt over a black tee. I grabbed a pair of flats before I shut the door to my room.

"Are you heading to school, Blythe? Elsie looked at me, a worried expression on her face; Edwin was standing not too far behind her, a smug smile plastered across his face.

"Yeah." I nodded. "It won't snow until tonight." I shrugged and noticed Elsie fish something from her jacket pocket and pass it off to Edwin.

"Come on," Edwin laughed and began to walk to the door. That's when I felt it: the soft tickle of a vision. Then I saw it.

"They-" I paused taking it all in. "They're moving."

"Are you seeing them, Blythe?" Emily pushed passed everyone. I couldn't speak, the vision was too strong, and so I nodded. "Where are they moving?"

I blacked everyone out so I could see it all. It was longer than usual. They were all packing their things. Their leader, a blonde with eyes different than our own crimson, was offering his mate a kiss and held up the tickets to show her: Alaska. Then the vision fast forward to the others packing. The half breed and the shape shifter were staying behind. The others though, they were moving. Fast.

"Alaska." I said strain present in my voice. "Somewhere in Alaska."

"Can you be more specific, Blythe?" Emily asked grasping my shoulders.

"No." I shook my head. "Not now." I tried to focus more but it failed

"They haven't decided where yet." I shook my head. "But the shape shifter and the half breed are staying behind."

"The shape shifter and the half breed are irrelevant, the others though? Are all the others leaving?"

"Yes." I nodded

"Pack your things everyone, we're moving." Emily smiled manically.


	3. Home Sweet Home

Normally, when I'm on the road it's normally the few times in my unnaturally long life, that I'm glad I can't sleep, can't dream. Today was different. _She_ would always be the focus. My sister, the girl used to call me her "little bear." The one I mercilessly attacked. The one I turned into a bloodthirsty being such as myself.

"Have you ever thought of focusing on her?" Aurora asked from the front seat.

"It doesn't work that way." I frowned. "Besides, I can't see her." It was a half lie and Aurora picked at my thoughts, my reasoning at my response. She nodded accepting my answer as she too watched my last vision of my sister, her for the first time.

_She was rabid. The blood of her victims was flowing from her lips. _They_ had found her. The police._

_ "Kill her, Felix." a petite blonde turned to a tall and extremely built black haired vampire. He approached my sister and before he could grab her, a short and nimble man with long jet black hair cut in._

_ "Not yet, Jane." He stopped the burly man and knelt down to my sister._

_ "Aro, I thought we didn't give second chances?" Jane stared at him, her tone filled with disapproval. He just waved her off._

"_What is your name dear child?" he asked looking at her. He offered her his hand to help her up._

_ "Allegra." She snarled and took it after a moment's hesitation. He pulled her up to her feet after a moment._

_ "Jane, Allegra will be our only second chance." He smiled. She clenched her jaw and shifted her chin out. _

_ "Fine." She said her voice clean of all emotion. _

That was the first time and the last time I saw my sister as a vampire. Ever since then, I tried to focus on her and got nothing. It was like she was silenced behind a barrier. I frowned thinking about the vagueness of my sister's future.

"Maybe she found a gifted mate?" Aurora interjected.

"We're almost there." Solomon said from the driver's seat. He obviously was feeling quite left out of our conversation.

"Do you know what the house looks like?" I chimed in. Solomon looked at me sharply in the rear view mirror.

"What do you mean? Haven't you already seen the house?" he asked.

"My last vision was yesterday before we left." I shrugged. He tossed me a slight smile in the mirror as an 'oh' and continued driving. It wasn't long before we pulled toward a magnificent house. It was a logged mansion with at least three floors. The bottom floor was covered in stone and everything above that was wood. A couple balconies jutted off from adjacent sides and in between both balconies a wall was present that was almost dedicated to windows. A small tower was visible just above one of the balconies.

"Home sweet home?" Aurora stated a question heavy on her comment. We watched as Emily's and Christopher's vehicle's pulled turned into the drive to the back of the house. Emily was the first to get out of a car then followed by Elsie. Christopher and Edwin got out of the next vehicle and finally Solomon stopped the car to allow the rest of us emerge from his vehicle.

"Home sweet home." Emily grinned and took a step toward the house. "There's a bit of exterminating we have to do but I think we can handle that." She began to proceed to the front door. The six of us followed not far behind. She knocked on the door and an elderly couple answered the door.

"I'm sorry." Emily put on an act we knew all too well. "We're lost may we come in and use your phone?"

"Oh yes dearie." The woman moved out of the way and her husband allowed us to pass into the room. the man looked at each of us strangely like we were some novelty. Granted to the majority of the human race we were a novelty. Emily turned to all of us and gave us a quick nod. Christopher, Edwin, Elsie and Emily all latched onto the man and Solomon, Aurora and I grabbed the woman.

Feeding to us was always something special, something we always did as a family. This time was no different. Her blood was purer than any of the other meals I've had. She was untainted by almost any drug. The only taint that was present was the soft and sweet tickle of wine. It didn't take long for her screams to gargle and her to take her last breath.

"Good." Emily smiled and looked around the rustic log mansion. "Start picking rooms."


	4. Mainfield

It had been a few days since our first meal. The inside was extraordinary. The living room, kitchen, dining room, office and a bathroom took up the ground floor. Three large bedrooms, a library and a bathroom took up the second floor. The third held another three or four bedrooms and the tower was a double story room. Aurora and Solomon nabbed the bedroom nearest the tower, which I claimed as my own. Edwin and Elsie claimed a room on the third level along with Christopher and Emily. There was a small basement as well which we used as a sort of 'meat locker' by several bags of blood in a freezer that was once used for frozen food.

I had spent the first two days arranging my room so my personal sitting and music room was on the top floor and my 'public' room was on the bottom. The majority of my things were up above. The only things that remained 'down stairs' were my desk, an armoire and several boxes of shoes.

The third day brought a vision of them. They had planted in a home just off of the main house of another coven. They were planning on attending a school in the area, Mainfield, in two days. When I had relayed my vision to Emily, she nodded and went to work on making us her undercover agents.

"So," I heard Emily behind me causing me to turn around to look at her. "I've placed everything you need in a backpack including contacts."

"Whatever." I shrugged. I was one of the many 'school eligible' members of the coven. Emily considered herself, Christopher and Solomon 'too old' and left the rest of us to attend. Edwin was probably the only people who didn't give a damn about school. Aurora and I enjoyed school and learning unlike Elsie who loathed every minute of it.

"They've got a dress code." She commented.

"Okay." I looked around for the attire she mentioned and found it not long after.

"Thought I'd tell you and Aurora before Christopher breaks it to Edwin and Elsie." She shrugged. Then we heard a horrible scream come from up stairs.

"Too late." We said in unison and she left me to get ready. It was a crisp white shirt and a cream pleated skirt with black accents. Black leggings, shoes, tie, blazer for colder months, vest for warmer. You name it. I opened the door to my armoire and took a look at myself. I looked decent and not too long after I was dressed, Aurora and Solomon joined me in my room.

"Well, don't we look adorable?" she said over my shoulder looking at the two of us in the mirror. A trill of a giggle escaped her mouth.

"Well, ready to go?" I heard Elsie growl from the hallway. She made sure she was not one to be tempted with by styling her hair in a slightly messy bun.

"Grab a bite to eat before you all leave." Emily said from the living room waiting until she heard the rip of a bag of blood. Afterward our breakfast, the five of us escaped from the house with coats and hats: Edwin, Elsie, Aurora, Solomon and me. Once we were in one of the vehicles, we pulled out a container of brown contacts and placing them on our blood red irises to make us seem that more normal. The ride there was rather slow. We had spent the majority of it in near silence.

Once we were at the school, Mainfield, we were bombarded with various teens and preteens gawking at us. At times like these, I wonder why I'm not as vain as Emily or some of the other vampires we crossed in our path. The staring was something I had grown used to, it was the obvious jaws hanging open from the male body, and a few girls, that made it that more uncomfortable. I felt the tickle of a vision and Aurora had kept me moving the whole time.

_They weren't attending school this time. They were staying at the homestead longer. They would be attending here. Soon._

"They're not attending here, yet." I whispered to the rest of them but Aurora had already gained that information. "They'll be here in a few days." I was amazed that we were fairing this well. Their blood, their untainted blood called to us. Elsie looked about the school ground uneasily, a few of the girls, young and old, were eyeing Edwin up rather conspicuously.

"Okay." Aurora's smiled and hooked our arms together. "Let's go and get our schedules." We pressed into the building. It was an old school; it'd been around since the late 50's, yet there were recent designs: bulletin boards, lockers, posters dedicated to drama, concerts, student council and the like. We walked into the main office and each of the ladies looked at us curiously. I looked at each of us.

"Ives and Abbot. We were called in earlier this week?" I let my eyebrows rise and one in particular nodded.

"One moment please." She smiled and began to print out our schedules one by one. Edwin got his first, Aurora got hers second, then I got mine and Elsie was last. We walked out as a group and began to find our class rooms and lockers. We luckily had lockers in a row

I looked down at my schedule as we were walking. It was split into two sets. The first was a Monday/Wednesday/Friday.

_First hour: Astronomy_

_ Second hour: Calculus_

_ Third hour: French_

_ -Lunch-_

_ Fourth hour: AP History_

_ Fifth hour: Study hall_

The second was for Tuesday/Thursday.

_First hour: Chemistry_

_ Second hour: Trigonometry_

_ Third hour: Study hall_

_ -lunch-_

_ Fourth hour: AP English_

_ Fifth hour: Ballroom Dancing_

"Ballroom Dancing?" Elsie's eyebrows arched as she peered over my shoulder. I looked at her then at her schedule. We had nothing together but her and her mate had practically all their classes together. I looked at Aurora's. She and I had the same classes to a 'T.'

"Well," Aurora began. "Ready for Astronomy?"

The class room was filled three quarters of its capacity of students. Each turned to look at us like we were some beautiful anomaly. There was a nun at the head of the classroom. She looked at the two of us before addressing us

"Welcome to Mainfeild," She smiled a generally warm smile. "I am Sister Hannah. Please take a seat where available." She moved her hand toward the pre-twentieth century desks. The whole front row was empty, probably from the student body fearing the teacher. Aurora and I took our seats just as the bell tolled the beginning of class.

"Now, since you are new to this school, come to the front and introduce yourselves." She smiled. Aurora and I took one quick look at one another, checking our contacts which still had the brown tint to them. We'd be safe for another few hours. I stood up first followed by Aurora.

"Hi, I'm Blythe." I smiled at the crowd and got a few returned.

"And I'm Aurora." She did the same.

"Oh, what beautiful names!" Sister Hannah gushed and took center stage again letting Aurora and I sit down. I leaned toward Aurora.

"How much do you want to bet Elsie's freaking out right now?" I whispered and offered her a smirk.


	5. Sugary Sweet

"I can't believe it!" Elsie shrieked once we were home. "You sent me to a catholic private school!" She turned to look at Emily.

"Don't look at me, I wasn't the one with the vision!" Emily hissed and Elsie turned to me.

"YOU!"

"I didn't know it was a catholic school." I shrugged and moved forward. "We might not be here that long anyway." It was something my body felt sure of even though I did not see that far into our future. I stepped forward and up the stairs to my tower, shutting the door behind me as I did so. The sounds from down stairs were snuffed out for the most part. I removed my blazer and backpack and draped them over the back of my desk chair.

"Hey," Aurora peaked in. "You okay?" A look of worry flashed across her face.

"I'm fine. Thanks." I gave her a half smile. "Why wouldn't I be okay?" She shrugged.

"Emily's going to ask if you see anything about them." Aurora looked at me.

"Tell her I haven't." I shook my head and opened the door wider for me to step out of the room. She moved out of my way and I smiled at her.

"Going for a run." Aurora smiled. "I'll leave you be for a bit." She scanned my mind for a bit searching for some distinct reason. She frowned when her scan retrieved nothing more than a sudden urge. I was the only one aside from Solomon that Aurora considered family. I smiled at her and pressed down stairs. Emily and the others looked at me curiously when I stepped downstairs. I ignored their stares and bolted out of the house into a nearby forest.

The feeling of the wind sending my long brunette locks flowing behind me felt intoxicating. It was something I missed doing when we were in large cities like Chicago, New York and the like. Running, my past time, my hobby.

I took a shallow right turn and started heading off toward some indistinct direction when the scent hit me. Sugary sweet. A scent I knew all too well. Vampire. A vampire had treaded onto 'our' territory. I stopped contemplating chasing them or staying to get assistance. Before long, my territorial instinct kicked in and I was flying after the culprit.

As I got closer and closer, it became a he. He was fast, I'll give him that but not fast enough. In due time I saw him: dark brown almost black hair, jeans, grey unzipped hoody following him like a flag. I lunged and caught him. We wrestled until he pinned me to the ground. His eyes black as night and a face so gorgeous it should have belonged to a god. His face was inches away from mine as he let out a low aggressive hiss.

"You're on Ives Territory." I growled. He didn't respond aside from another low hiss. His eyes traced my face, taking in every detail he could. His jaw clenched before he tore himself off me and raced away. I looked after him and tried to squeeze the distance between us. I didn't stop until I crashed head first into what felt like a barrier. I stood up and placed my hands on the invisible wall and felt around thinking there was some sort of break, tear, or hidden door. Nothing. Absolutely Nothing.


	6. First Meeting

It had been a week since I had seen the mystery animalistic vampire. I had relayed my meeting of him to my coven and Emily had mentioned he was most likely a newborn. I frowned. I had remembered nothing of that sort. I never remembered the animalistic nature, the craving for blood, the arrogance to neglect coven boundaries.

He was always on my mind. Who was he? Why was he like that? It got to the point that every time I thought of him, I got the beginnings of a vision that was animalistic and focused on him. But before long, I was torn away just like I was being forcefully pulled away.

"Why don't you give up trying?" Aurora said one afternoon during history while rubbing her temples gingerly. "You're giving me a head ache."

"Sorry." I shrugged and frowned and began to focus on the topic, the American Civil War.

"No, I wasn't born yet," Aurora sighed and I began to scan the room. A few boys on the other end of the room were eyeing us up and one offered us a nod. I quickly shifted to a few of the 'stoners,' if you will, whose heads were resting on their books and soft snores were escaping from their slightly ajar mouths. A few of the girls on the other end of the room were nodding off and several others were trying to concentrate on the nun's speech. _I'm bored._

"I am too." Aurora read my mind and heaved a sigh. We looked at the door after a soft rap occurred. The nun opened the door to see three people: a boy and two girls. The boy had fiery red hair. The first girl was smaller than the other two and had short black hair. The final girl had long brunette locks. One characteristic set them off from the other students: their eyes, their golden eyes.

I side glanced at Aurora and then back to the three new comers. The boy whispered to the two girls who in turn looked at us. The brunette girl shot daggers at Aurora and me.

"Welcome and you—" the nun was cut off by the boy showing off their schedule. "We had new students not too long ago. If you don't mind, would you be willing to introduce yourselves for us?"

"Certainly." The pixie-like girl smiled. "I'm Alice."

"Edward." The boy grunted, his gaze never leaving Aurora and I.

"Bella." The final girl shifted awkwardly.

"Nice of you to join us." She smiled. "There are open seats behind the Ives sisters." She motioned to Aurora and I at the back of the room. Edward and I began a stare down as he walked to the back of the room. It was awkward being in the room with them. They were our 'prey.' They were what we were hunting for so long. I had to return to Emily as soon as possible.

We returned home later that day, I raced to Emily in the living room reading a paperback version of Macbeth.

"What is it?" she looked up at me.

"The Cullens."

"Did you see them?"

"Not exactly but—"

"If you didn't see them, I don't wanna hear it." She went back to her book. I looked at Aurora who just shrugged and I left her be.

"She had a bad day." Christopher said from the far side of a ping pong table while battling it out against Edwin.

"She did?"

"Yeah. About an hour after you left, the state police came because someone filed a missing persons thing for that elderly couple. The questioned her for a good hour until they gave up and left." He stopped the game for a bit and I quickly frowned. "Yeah, none of us were expecting the 5-O to get involved. Especially Em. So what were you going to tell her."

"They've finally arrived at school. Aurora and I sit in front of three of them in History."

"Took 'em long enough. Do you know why?" he scoffed then looked over to Aurora.

"To get 'comfortable' in their new setting." She shrugged.

"I'll talk with Em later. Once she's cooled down and we'll figure out what to do." He said before getting ready to serve.


	7. Blank Slate

Emily was keeping our plans a secret. She even went to the lengths of pulling Aurora out of school leaving Elsie, Edwin and I, most notably me, alone with the Cullens.

"Blythe," the nun who taught history pulled me aside one day before class. "How is your sister?" she was a woman in her mid fifties with deep brown eyes and a kind demeanor.

"She's well enough to move about the house, but not well enough for school." I shrugged.

"Let her know she's in our prayers." She rested a hand on my forearm. Her gentle smile made me feel a warm spot deep down in my icy interior.

"I will, Sister." I couldn't help but to smile back at her before I slipped from the room.

"So your sister is sick?" I heard a light singsong voice behind me. I turned around to see the three Cullens, Alice, Edward and Bella.

"Yeah," I shrugged. "It's a serious case of pneumonia."

"Bull shit." Edward growled in a hushed tone before Bella grasped my arm and pulled me into an empty room.

"Don't play stupid." Bella hissed.

"We know what you are." Edward said and in a quick movement of his hand he forced my brown contacts from my eyes showing them my crimson ones.

"Why are you here?" Bella asked. I was silent. I had seen a few visions of Alice. Blanking out, forgetting about everything around her. Like I did, before Emily tried to get me to force myself, now they hurt, a crippling pain.

"Alice should know." I looked at her for a split second. They were silent for a moment all looking at me.

"Alice knows—" Edward began.

"Edward, Bella, step outside, please." Alice said before taking a step closer to me. "I know this is strange, but I can't see you. What are you?"

"What do you think?" I tugged at my blazer. "I'm a vampire."

"That's not," she sighed letting her fingers rest on her temples. "What I mean is, what were you? Before the change."

"Human." I shrugged. Alice was silent for a few moments.

"How—" Alice shook her head and in a quick flash Edward and Bella were back in the room. Edward grasping my arms and pinning them back and Bella tying a white piece of fabric across my eyes and it twisted around my head to gag me. I was slung over someone's shoulder, probably Edward, and he paused.

"Bella, stay on watch." Alice ordered. "Make sure no one sees us then follow us out."

"Okay." Bella answered before I was swept up quickly and pulled out of the room through a window they quickly opened. Edward was waiting in the snow while Alice raced away only to return with their vehicle.

"Hurry, Edward." Alice said from the driver's seat before he threw me against the back seat and slammed the door behind him. Bella raced into the car not long after and they sped off.


	8. Capture

I felt the wrap around my eyes come off and I could finally see. I was surrounded by not only my captors but also several others: three blondes, two men and a woman, and two brunettes, a man and a woman. The one of the male blondes was attached to the brunette woman. The other blonde male was on the far end of the room, the final male was pinning me to the concrete floor. The blonde female was hunched down in a defensive crouch and glaring at me like I had treaded on thin ice. I clearly felt like I did.

"Her name is Blythe." Edward hissed toward the blonde man, the one I'd seen in my visions. Carlisle.

"Blythe, why are you here?" He asked, wisdom was clear in his voice.

"Talk to your… 'kids'" I nodded toward my captors.

"That's not what I mean." He sighed shaking his head. I looked to Alice and Edward.

"I can't tell you." I looked down. "I swore I wouldn't tell."

"Edward, read her." I heard the wise vampire say and waited expecting to inform him of Emily, blow our cover.

"We need to talk." I looked up to see Carlisle elder looking at Edward strangely.

"Alice, Esme, into the next room." he pressed forward with Alice and Edward at his heels. They were gone quite some time and the only remaining male blonde was eyeing me in pain. When they returned, the elder looked exasperated.

"How? How can this be?" he said to no one in particular.

"C-can I go at least?" I struggled with in the grasp of the burly male.

There was a silence for a moment. "No." he shook his head. "Everyone, please, leave us." The room cleared quickly. The man stood in between me and my only way out.

"Tell me," he began. "Who sent you here?"

"I have no idea who you're talking about." I shook my head hoping he'd believe me.

"Don't be difficult." He shook his head and sighed. I figured he wouldn't believe me. His eyes widened and looked behind me. I slowly looked as well to see the black mist creep from one of the shadowed corners. Elsie popped out and grabbed me in a swift move her crimson eyes were present for all to see. She smirked at Carlisle before we disappeared into the fog.


	9. Plans

We had returned home not long after Elsie closed her portal. Emily and the others were eyeing me worriedly. Aurora raced to my side.

"Are you okay? Edwin and Elsie said you never got to the hang out spot…" Aurora pulled me into a hug.

"I'm fine." I patted myself down.

"I'm pulling you from school." Emily growled. "All of you."

"What?" Aurora and I asked. Edwin was a man of indifference, and Elsie was practically beaming with joy.

"By the fact that we saved you from being kidnapped and Elsie showed her face to their leader," Emily's face was emotionless. "We have to make our stand. Soon."

Aurora knocked on my door the next day. "Emily wants us down stairs. For the family meeting." She sighed. Something was on her mind.

"Okay." I stood up letting my pencil drop to my desk. I slowly walked over to her.

"Blythe, I gotta talk to you. Later." She whispered. "What Emily's doing isn't right. Meet me in the woods about two miles out at nine tonight. Follow the red ribbons." It was barely even audible, I was straining to hear her. She then disappeared down the hall and I heard her light steps down the stairs. I followed not far behind.

The chairs were organized in a semicircle around a table. Emily was sitting at the bare end and various objects—fifteen in all—were placed in strategic settings.

Emily's battle plans. "The time has finally come." Emily began smiling. "They're almost in our grasp! Before the Battle begin, Solomon, try to detect their abilities. Aurora and Blythe, I want you to take out the short girl with the pixie cut and the brunette with the redhead. Solomon and Edwin, Go after the redhead and the one with the scars. Christopher, go for the strong one. Elsie, go for the remaining girls. Leave the leader to me." She would move certain markers to certain places after she said what we were to do. Once she was finished, she smiled, pride was clearly visible across her face.

"If you finish off anyone, help the others. They may have numbers but we have age and skill."

"You make it seem easy." Elsie looked at her.

"We'll start training tomorrow morning." Emily ignored Elsie's comment.


	10. Midnight Meeting

I had waited in my room for the clock to slowly move toward midnight. It was painfully slow and it reminded me of eternity. Each hand on the clock moved too slow. To pass time, I had reread a few books out of my collection: Atonement and the Other Boleyn Girl.

It wasn't until I noticed the soft 'bong' from the grandfather clock from down stairs. I quietly locked my door and opened the window. I took a quick look behind me then at the ground below. I jumped from the window landing, hopefully, silent as a ninja on the snow. I looked back behind me and waited to hear any movement from the house before darting toward the wood.

Aurora's hint was present in my mind. [i]_Follow the red ribbons._[/i] Once in the forest, I looked for any hint of red. Scoping all around me I noticed a small flicker in between a few trees when the wind blew from the east. There's going to be a storm far worse than some of the others we've had since our departure from our old home.

I followed the red ribbon and finally caught Aurora's scent. Every twenty or so yards there was a red ribbon so I wouldn't get lost. Finally I reached them, Aurora had brought Solomon. Obviously he, if he didn't already know, would know soon enough.

She was pacing, paving a trail in the snow. For the first time in a long time, she wasn't the bouncing bubbly girl I'd spent nearly a century with. She was completely serious and when those few moments crept up and snapped you like a whip, you knew something terrible was in store.

"Blythe," She stopped pacing and looked at me. Her normally luscious radiant red hair was now arid and frizzy. Exhaustion was present on her face making her body droop. Her eyes were the darkest shade of black; she hadn't eaten in days. I mentally kicked myself for not seeing how whatever she'd heard amongst Emily's thoughts had affected her.

"Don't beat yourself up," she shook her head. "I've been hiding it." She offered a small smile to reassure me but it had definitely not done so.

"What is it you wanted to tell me?" I hugged her side.

"Emily. Have you ever wondered why she wanted to destroy these people? The Cullens?" I shook my head which urged her forward after she released a small sigh. "About two or three centuries ago, she was in a coven before ours. It was small, just her and one other, Sybbyl.

"Sybbyl had a friend, Carlisle. She grew infatuated by Carlisle. From what I perceived, the two were nothing more than friends but Emily thought otherwise. She turned on Sybbyl to gain her 'trophy.' _Her_ Carlisle.

"Afterward she visited Carlisle and told him of her deed. He was appalled at what she did to her friend and the woman who turned her. She tried to reason with him that they were meant to be and Sybbyl was hindering 'their' love.

"He did not believe her and left town. When she found out, she swore revenge; make him pay for destroying her already dead heart." She paused and Solomon squeezed her shoulder.

"We're an 'army,' Blythe." She frowned. "Once she's destroyed Carlisle and his coven, she'll destroy us too."


	11. Preparations

Our training was rather long. Six to seven hours a day for the past five days. I felt that by now my marble muscles should be aching like crazy. On the night of the fourth day, I had a vision of Emily being visited by none other than the police. The fifth day rolled by and on the sixth day Emily had given us a break yet disappeared from view for the majority of the day.

"I'm home." Emily called from the living room when she finally returned at about seven o'clock in the evening. "I brought you gifts!" she exclaimed. I heard the stomping of half the coven as they raced down the stairs. I peaked out my door to see Aurora and Solomon slowly trying to find out what it was. I eased from behind my door and listened as I slowly made my way to the stairs and, inevitably, the first floor.

It wasn't anything peculiar. I didn't hear voices aside from my own coven. I did hear the soft beating of something. It wasn't until I was more than half way to the stairs that it registered. The soft rhythmic beating, the muffled screams and hoarse breathing, the delicious smell of…

Blood. Emily had brought us food. I raced downstairs. I hadn't eaten since long before our training and the blood coursing within the three dregs' bodies called to me.

"Eat. You'll need the strength." Emily said as she watched us devour them. "And when you're done with them, finish up the reserves in the basement. After tomorrow, I don't want to remain here any longer."

I turned my head to look up at her. In my ravenous hunger, she looked like a kind goddess watching out for her followers. Something far from her own image in reality.

"We run to their home tomorrow evening. In the shadow of the night. They'll never expect us. Right Solomon?"

"Right." He nodded. He, Aurora and I were the ones she often went to regarding the Cullen's. We were her 'information hoards' as she called us. We had the access to people's futures, minds and abilities.

"What about you?" Christopher moved over so she could join in the feast. She shook her head.

"I've already had my fill." She smiled. I sideways glanced at Aurora before I left the group to head to the basement to attack the reserves. To my joy, Aurora joined me in the basement.

"Stay back with me." I whispered to Aurora before tearing open one of the bags of blood. "You can already see my battle plan, I want it to be kept quiet until tomorrow." She remained silent and just nodded an acceptance.


	12. Confrontation

The moon was rather large in the eastern sky. A pale vision of radiance that would guide us. Emily waited inside the house for a bit longer. We had all refrained from wearing frilly and loose things. Elsie's, Aurora's and my hair were all tied up in tight buns close to our heads and away from our faces. We had all worn some sort of dark, tight clothing that prevented any form of advantage toward the Cullens. Emily was the only one left out.

She was wearing a calf length dress that was form fitting. The only skin that was showing was her head, neck, hands and where the dress cut off. She looked like she belonged in a silent movie with her hair left down, curly and pinned away from her face. I noticed Christopher watching her beautiful figure. He was in love.

I felt my vision begin to haze. I sat down in the nearest chair and let the vision slowly creep into view.

_ Emily's plan had messed up. The Cullens had taken us over. She was wrong about them. We had nothing on them._

"_Stop!" Elsie shouted. "Don't do this to my sister!" She shouted and wrapped her arms around Emily. Christopher was already defending her from a burly brunette man, Edward and one other, and he was miserably failing._

"_Emily!" Christopher shouted reaching for Emily with his remaining hand. Her face and body were unmoving. She watched him with cold eyes and it finally registered to him. The brunette one placed a hand under his chin and on his other on one of his temples, ready to tear his head clean from his shoulders._

_ In one quick and easy move, his head was severed. Christopher had spoken no more. He was no more. The rest had then proceeded to the rest of us. Finishing us off one by one. I had seen Emily running from them. The only survivor._

I gasped when it was finished. My death everyone's death. I had seen it. We were going to fail.

"It's time to move." Emily called and crashed through the door letting the glass shatter as she ran through it. Christopher, Elsie and Edwin were flanking her. Solomon and Aurora were next and I, still recovering from seeing our deaths, was last.

Once we were running, Aurora slowly fell back to my pace. "We have to stop them." She breathed.

"We'll follow Emily's plan, just don't kill anyone." I answered.

They were all standing in a row. All eight of them. Emily had stopped leaving the rest of us to skid.

"Hello, Carlisle." She said in a seducing tone I had never heard her say toward Christopher. I side glanced toward Christopher who had also noticed and clenched his jaw looking for whoever Carlisle was.

"Hello, Emily." He answered. "My answer still stands." He pulled Esme toward him to show her. She glared at Esme and barred her teeth before lunging and attacking.

I had pushed my way toward the girl I had met before and the one who had kidnapped me, Alice. I was pushing her back and away from the battle.

"What are you-" I cut her off.

"Act like we're fighting." I whispered which caught her off guard. "Please, spare my coven." Almost immediately after I'd said it, my vision was taking place.


	13. Death

Stop!" Elsie shouted. "Don't do this to my sister!" She shouted and wrapped her arms around Emily. Christopher was already defending her from a burly brunette man, Edward and one other, and he was miserably failing.

"She's not your sister." Aurora had intervened once Edward tore off Christopher's arm and the tow others had pinned the tattered body to the ground. Elsie looked at Aurora.

"What she says is true." Edward hissed in agreement.

"What do you mean she's not my sister?" Elsie asked, her voice cracking at the end.

"Emily!" Christopher shouted reaching for Emily with his remaining hand. Her face and body were unmoving. She watched him with cold eyes and it finally registered to him. Emmett placed a hand under his chin and on his other on one of his temples, ready to tear his head clean from his shoulders.

"Wait." Aurora bellowed to Emmett. Emmett removed his hands from Christopher's head and placed them on his shoulders with his knees.

"Your name," Aurora began. "Was Elisabeth Marie Smith. You were born more than three quarters of a century [i]_after[/i]_ her. She took you away from your family in 1776 and she made sure you'd never remember them again. Right, Emily?" Emily didn't say or do anything she just glared at Carlisle. Elsie looked at Emily.

"Emily, is what she said true?" Elsie turned to look at Emily. In the blink of an eye Emily pushed Elsie away from her and lunged for Carlisle. In a lunge just as quick as hers I blocked her attack and got my own in just in time: tearing her ear from the side of her head. I looked at the earlobe and then to Emily whose eyes were a dark red.

"How dare you!" she shouted and lunged at me. Her hands like claws and her teeth were barred.

"That was for Sybbyl." I huffed and crouched defensively, ready for her attack. I saw a flash of fear that crossed her face before she swiped at my throat and I clawed feverishly at her hair ripping large clumps with my own. The next thing that happened was something neither of us expected: Elsie jumped into the fray. She latched onto Emily's neck with her teeth and tore off a massive chunk.

Emily turned to face Elsie. The flap of Emily's skin was still hanging from Elsie's mouth. A low growl erupted from Emily's mouth and another body flew into the fray: Christopher. As his body crashed into hers I lunged at her and tore her arm clean from her shoulder. She looked at the three of us with an expression we all recognized: fear. In the split second that the emotion was present across her face, the three of us tore her apart.

In the wake of our attack, Carlisle stepped forward lighting a match and letting it fall to light her remains. He turned to look at the remaining six of us. Emmett approached Christopher with his arm and handed the limb to him. He quickly licked the wound on his arm and matched it up to the one on his body.

"You didn't have to protect my family and I." Carlisle said once her body was almost to an ash. We all remained silent.

"We know." Aurora nodded.

"But we," I paused thinking of the right words. "We find that you and your family weren't the evil here."

"I spent my whole life thinking that she was my sister." Elsie interjected. "I had a family. A family that probably loved me and missed me. And she took that away from me."

"We all did." We all supported Elsie's statement.

"I had a sister." I stated. "Because of her, I had given her a new life due to a new born rage and there isn't a day that goes by that I wonder where she is. How she's doing."

"Well." Carlisle began. "I thank you, we thank you." He pulled his mate, Esme, close. She offered a small smile to the six of us. The rest of Carlisle's coven pulled their mates together they were one happy family and I hoped the remaining six of us would gain that closure too.

We returned the smile. Emily's burning flesh cast a sticky sweet smell across the field. When the purple-grey smoke wafted toward my nose I felt that tickle I knew to enjoy.

_A group of nine people had ventured over seas and continents to speak with us. Their faces and bodies shrouded by their long black cloaks. They were enigmatic, they were fearsome. They were our police. _

_They were here to threaten us. They achieved their goal. We stood in a group of fourteen. The six of us and the eight Cullen's standing one by one in a line. We were threatened. More vampires were treading on 'our' territory._

_They were here to scold us for destroying our leader. Somehow they knew. Maybe it was one of their own. Maybe it was some strange connection they had throughout the vampire world._

_And they were here to give us an offer. An offer we 'couldn't' refuse. An offer given by Aro after taking my hand. An offer that was... _

There was a shock, like I was being hit by lightning. I couldn't finish what I was seeing. I was being torn from my vision. An event that rendered me nearly paralyzed.

"Aurora, what happened?" Christopher lunged toward me catching me before I could fall completely onto the ground. He wasn't the tough macho-man I expected him to be with the first look of worry plastered across his face I'd ever seen. The rest of our coven lunged to my aid and the Cullen's, I later learned, migrated toward Alice.

"What was with the ending?" Aurora looked at me pushing her way through people. "Why did that happen? Better question is [b]**how**[/b] did that happen?" the look on her face was completely filled with worry. She was just about as scared as I was.

"What just happened?" Alice sat up at the same time I did. We looked at one another with the recognition. We had the same ability.

"You saw it too?" I asked though I already knew it.

"You felt it too?" She did the same.

"Three days." We said in unison.

"The Volturi."

"The Police."

"They'll be meeting us at the field." I interpreted to my coven.

"I'll stand with you." Alice stood up.

"I will too." Jasper's southern drawl flipped from his mouth.

"As will we." Carlisle said as Esme squeezed his hand. The rest of the Cullen's followed suit offering to stand with us.


	14. Three Days

In the days leading to our meeting, we had learned the other's names. Carlisle's mate was named Esme. Alice had a mate by the name of Jasper. The other couple that frequented my visions was Rosalie and Emmett. Bella and Edward were a couple and had their own strange hybrid, the one from my vision. Solomon had developed an interest in the girl, he had always developed interests with those of special abilities but not a one was as special to him as Aurora. The Cullens offered for us to visit once the hybrid, Nessie as they referred to her quite often, and her mate had returned to their homestead.

Their diet was strange and they had taken us on a few hunting trips. Elsie and Edwin remained back at the house with Rosalie, they were the ones who had the biggest problem with their diet. At first the taste of the animals they ate was nothing compared to the euphoria that humans had. It was an interesting and nice way to sustain ourselves when humans weren't available to us and we wanted to keep a low profile.

But before long, our days dwindled down to none.


	15. Reunion

The three days were up and each and every one of us was standing waiting. They walked toward us, nine all together. Each had the hoods of their cloaks covering their faces. The center trio stepped toward us and stopped at least three yards away from us. Alice and Aurora stood at my sides. Aurora went to grasp my hand reassuringly.

"Hello, Aro." I called out. The one in the center of the nearest trio removed his hood and the other two followed suit.

"You've heard of me?" He asked a smile appeared on his lips.

"Yes." I lied, _I _saw_ you._ I searched the crowd of cloaked beings each as mysterious as the last. A part of me searched for the hint that Allegra was with them. Somewhere inside me, I yearned to see her. To see, after all the years we spent apart, that she was okay.

Aurora squeezed my hand and let go before Alice nudged me forward. I slowly made my way to him. Aro eyed me strangely but the rest of his face was indecipherable. I watched him hold his own hand out, palm up. I turned around and looked at Carlisle, a worried expression obviously present. He nodded and I turned back. I hesitated before placing my palm gingerly on the man's fingers. He watched the lines of my face with a blank stare. What Edward and Alice had mentioned long before about him, his power, was right. After a few moments he let my hand slip from his.

"So, you knew of me long before this meeting." His smile grew then faded. "I don't approve of you killing your leader." He said with a diction that belonged to a ruler. I stiffened in fear and searched all the cloaked figures again.

"Yet," he drew my attention back to him. "I'm glad you were turned. You brought the best tracker to me—" He smiled again and glanced quickly over his left shoulder to the trio there "—and you and your coven could be a better asset then those of the Cullen's." The air was heavy for a few moments while everyone waited for my answer.

"Thank you but—" I began but was cut off. The tickle cut me off. _Now? Of all places?_ I thought to myself. It was one I wasn't expecting.

_One of the cloaked figures stepped forward next to Marcus. She removed her cloak and I saw her for the first time in decades._

_Allegra._

The situation in my vision began to start at least as soon as it ended.

"I think you should reconsider his offer." Allegra said after she removed her cloak. An impassible shield was present on her face.

"Sister." We said in unison. The emotional shield shattered as soon as we finished. I couldn't tell if she was happy, relieved or shocked. There were too many emotions running across her face.

"You're okay." I managed to say. The emotions started slowing before one stayed: joy. We walked to each other and embraced for what felt like the first time in an eternity.

"I was so worried." Her voice cracked. I knew that if I could cry, I would have several waterfalls cascading down my face.

"I'm sorry." Mine cracked too. "I-I didn't mean to. I should have stayed with you. I should have never let you out of my sight."

"It's okay." She said in the soothing tone only a sister should say.

"I'm sorry but I'm not going to reconsider." I shook my head into her curly locks. I felt her stiffen for a second.

"I'm sorry to hear that." She pulled away from me to show off the obvious frown plastered across her face then pulled me back into a hug. "Run, I'll find you." Her voice was barely louder than the wind. I simply nodded knowing. Only three of us needed to know what was going on, me, Allegra, and Aurora. I quickly relayed my destination to Aurora and, with my vampire speed, ripped myself away from Allegra. I left the large group behind in my wake. Not long after I heard the five trailing steps of my remaining coven members racing to catch up with me. Aurora and Solomon were hanging to my right, Chirstopher was to my left and Edwin and Elsie in the rear.

"Quick, Demetri!" I heard Aro order long behind us.

"No." I heard Allegra's sing song voice. "There needs to be another second chance."

_The End_


	16. Visitors

It had been several months since our visit by the Volturi. Several months since I had last physically and psychically seen my sister. Every step we took, I knew my sister was not too far behind us. We had landed in an abandoned island cabana off the coast of Ecuador. It was a nice place and I was sure the humans who had once lived here loved it too.

"Where's Allegra?" Aurora asked. She and Solomon were going to go for a night swim.

"I haven't seen her." I shook my head. "I'll try though." She nodded and left with Solomon out the door. Edwin and Elsie were already 'sleeping' so the only two people left in the house were Christopher and me. Ever since Emily's death, Christopher had become a bit of a bodyguard. It was nice having an extremely buff guy making sure you were okay.

"Don't try too hard." Christopher looked at me and tossed in a half smile. I returned it and closed my eyes. I focused on my sister hoping that this would somehow work. Nothing. I furrowed my eyebrows and tried harder. Still nothing.

"You know, you're face will stay like that." I heard her chuckle and I opened my eyes.

"Allegra!" I shouted overjoyed and wrapped my arms around her neck. It wasn't until our moment was complete that I noticed her guest. He looked like he was Italian-born and even gorgeous in his pre-immortality. He was at least a foot taller than Allegra and a placid version of an olive tone. His eyes were as dark as a starless sky and his hair was a deep brown to match. A small goatee was visible on his chin from our distance.

"Blythe, this is Luca. My mate." She noticed who I was staring at. "He's a seer."

"Like me?" I asked rather confused.

"No." she shook her head. "He—" she stopped and sighed. "I'll explain it tomorrow morning when everyone's here." She then progressed into introducing me to him in Italian.

"Hello." His voice had an Italian accent.

"Nice to meet you." I offered him a hand to shake. "My other coven members are out. This is Christopher." I turned to see him at my side.

"Is he your mate?" Luca asked a clearly innocent question.

"Um." Christopher and I looked at each other.

"I had someone before." Christopher shook his head breaking our awkward moment.

"Oh."Allegra's brow furrowed. "Then how are you here? Alive? Doesn't it hurt to be away from your mate for eternity?" Allegra tensed for a moment. "Sorry. I'll leave you be. Is there a room we may stay in?" she asked holding onto Luca.

"Second floor third right." I offered and pointed toward the stairs


	17. The Seer

"We had guests?"Aurora asked the next morning. She was with Solomon who had a nervous look on his face.

"My sister and her mate." I looked at her from behind my book.

"I know I can smell them." She nodded sitting down across from me. "But I can't hear them. What is he?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Allegra was at the foot of the stairs and looking towards us. "Luca." She called up the stairs and her mate raced to her side.

"Luca, this is—"

"Aurora and Solomon." Solomon stepped forward to shake his hand. He squinted for a second, using his power to scan the makeup of Luca. "A blank slate. Are you like Bella Cullen?"

"I'll go get Edwin and Elsie, they might want to hear this." Aurora twirled around Luca and raced up the stairs to bring Edwin and Elsie down with her. Edwin was silent while Elsie was groaning about Aurora dragging her downstairs. She stood up straight when she saw our visitors.

"Luca," Allegra rubbed his shoulder. "May you explain yourself to my sister's coven?"

He was silent for a moment, thinking of the right words. "I… can tap into any vampire's mind. See what they're doing, thinking and even block them from reading me." Solomon eyes widened. "So no, sir, I am not like this 'Bella Cullen.'"

"Are there others?" Solomon asked, an excited look on his face. "There must be others of your kind."

"I'm not sure. We are unreadable even to each other." Luca shook his head

"What are characteristics?" Solomon paused. "_Are_ there characteristics we should look for?"

Luca looked to Allegra. "No." He looked back at Solomon. "Not that I can remember."


	18. The Kiss

It had been a few days since Allegra and Luca's arrival. Luca's question was still present on my mind. Were we really mates? If he wasn't who was mine? One night while I was in my room, I heard the faint shuffling from down the hallway and a rap on my door. I slowly walked to the door and pulled it open to see Christopher.

"Good Evening." I tossed a crooked smile between us and he pressed his lips against mine. It was gentle, sweet. It was the complete opposite of what I had expected from him. I had expected it to be harsh, fierce. He pulled away slowly and let his lower jaw shift back and forth.

"I just wanted to see something." He shrugged. I now see that it was on his mind too. He looked at me. The gaze we held was no different than before. He wasn't mine and I wasn't his.

"We'll still be friends, right? None of this awkward shit." I raised my eyebrows. He smiled in acceptance.

"You'll still be my little sister." He pulled me into a headlock then proceeded into giving me a nuggie.

"Do I want to know what's going on here?" He stopped and we both looked up to see Allegra standing in my doorway. Christopher stood up straight letting my head go in the process.

"We were just having fun ma'am." Christopher stood straight as a board. He feared her, he respected her. She looked at me worriedly.

"Chris, she's not like the little blonde. She can't hurt you." I looked at Allegra hoping what I said was correct. She briefly nodded at me; something she used to do to acknowledge that I said something right. Christopher relaxed a bit and looked back at me. I smiled at him in reassurance. Though it was spontaneous and something that should belong to a wild animal, it hit me like a crippling blow.

_The boy, the feral one, something was wrong. He was in trouble. He was running from something, someone. He needed someone. He needed… me. _

"Blythe, Blythe!" I heard Christopher call. "Allegra, go get Aurora."

"Aurora? Which one's—"

"Red. Hair." I heard him say once more then the quick shuffles of Allegra leaving the room. I peered up at him; my head was resting against his left arm and my body was sprawled across his thighs. The look in his orange eyes was heart melting. He pulled me toward him.

"You called?" Aurora skipped into the room.

"Read her mind." He ordered as she returned a rather confused expression. "We were talking and she just collapsed." He was reading her face the whole time he explained. "Please." Aurora didn't say anything, just read my exasperated face. I felt her scan my recent thoughts then her face became strained as she watched the vision.

"Odd." She said at last. "Why does he need you? He doesn't even know you."


	19. The Feral One

The next morning, Allegra, Christopher, Aurora and I all sat in the living room waiting. Waiting for Luca, Elsie, Edwin and Solomon to appear from upstairs. Solomon and Luca were first then Edwin and last Elsie. Luca raced to Allegra's side and said something in Italian, which she followed on.

"What's wrong?" Solomon asked curiously looking to Aurora, fearing the worst.

"I'm fine, Solomon." Aurora smiled at him then he looked to the others, the same expression on his face.

"Someone needs our help." I said at last. Solomon froze.

"Is it the Cullens?"

"No." I shook my head. "Remember the boy I told you about?"

"The feral one?" I nodded.

"He needs us." I looked at Aurora. She knew I was telling a half truth. She saw the vision. Something told me to bring them with, the more help the merrier.

"Well, I'm in regardless." Christopher squeezed my hand and smiled.

"I am too." Solomon looked at Aurora who nodded, she had been in too. Allegra and Luca both nodded as well.

"I guess we're in too." Elsie looked at Edwin who stood silently next to her.

"Where are we going?" Solomon asked looking at all of us.

"I don—" I was cut off by a deep rabid growl echoing in my mind. _St. Petersburg._

"St. Petersburg." Aurora translated while I was still in the shock of hearing the raspy voice deep inside my head.

"How did you…?" Allegra began then looked to Luca who shrugged. "We should leave right away." She stated almost right away after her initial statement. Aurora warily looked to me. Something was off here.


	20. St Petersburg

The airport was busier than we had expected. There were at least several dozen people going on our flight alone. Several eyed us with a lustful tinge in their eyes, others, the locals, eyed us with fear. They knew what we were. They were waiting for us to attack, to decimate them.

Aurora nudged my side and nodded toward Allegra who was shaking so badly, she was producing a slight hum. It was the first time she'd been out on her own. Out and away from the Volturi, who she became so dependent upon for food and shelter and the fact that we were sitting in an all human airport probably wasn't helping her any.

_Flight 611 to St. Petersburg is now boarding in gate 10._ A rather robotic calm female voice erupted from the intercom and bounced monotonously off the walls and Allegra was the first to shoot up from hers seat. The eight of us boarded the plane silently. Allegra clenched Luca's hand as the other humans boarded. _This is going to be a long ride._ I looked to Aurora who nodded.

When the plane touched down, the several moments leading up to seeing _him_ were too slow and dragged on for what felt like eternity. At the current moment, we were collecting our bags. It made me wish I didn't bring even the few things I purchased while we were on the run.

"You'll see him soon." Aurora squeezed my shoulder and gave me a reassuring smile.

"It's taking too long." I sighed resting my head on her shoulder as Solomon and Christopher collected the final bags. I felt Aurora smile as her head was rested on my own.

"Have you seen him or talked with him?" I noticed Allegra glanced in our direction then back to Luca.

"Not really." I stopped. "All I—"

"Not now." Aurora stopped me in a hushed tone. "We can talk while we're driving." I glanced at her once. She was acting rather strangely lately. Ever since Allegra joined the party.

"Lets go." Christopher smiled as he handed me my duffelbags. He placed his hand around my shoulders and pulled me close.

We quickly made our way out to the parking lot. I looked to Allegra unsure if she called in a rental and she shrugged in respose. I felt a fast grip on my elbow and someone wheeling me around.

There he was, the feral one. He wore shades even though it was well past dark and his stance was stiff. I felt the tickle of his rabid voice, _who are they?_

_My coven. _I thought back wondering if he knew what I was saying. _They've come to help._

He tilted his head up a bit, assessing the others then pulling me._ Tell them to follow me._

"Follow us." I called back and then I noticed something I didn't before. I could feel his heartbeat.


	21. The Others

From within a 'stalker' white van, he drove us to a derelict building on the far edge of a neighboring town whose name I didn't care to remember. He didn't make eye contact at all and it appeared that he went out of his way to not look at the 'new' members of our coven.

"This is our abode." His voice was melodious and belonged to a baritone. It was awkward finally hearing his voice outside of the walls of my mind. Yet at the same time it fit. He opened the door letting everyone in. It was the first time he glanced at someone other than the floor or was hidden behind a pair of shades. His eyes were different than ours.

A shade of magnificent blue.

"Our?" I heard Allegra pipe up from inside the building. He ignored her question, staring intently into my eyes.

"Russell? Did you bring guests?" a feminine voice called from within the building. She appeared and he looked away to her. I followed his gaze to the woman. She had chest length wavy red hair a few shades darker than Aurora's. her eyes were a deep maroon and got darker as she looked to me.

"Who is this, Russell?" her question was curt and it felt like it burned in the air as it passed into the air.

"Blythe." He said unchanged by her tone of voice.

"Blythe? How do you know Russell?" she turned to me. A look that Emily often wore was present on her face. I was silent for a moment.

"That's none of your business, Kassandra." He growled to her.

"Who are these people?" she snapped.

"My coven."

"Wh-"

"Kassandra, enough." The feral one growled. Russell. His name was Russell. I watched him as he moved his hand for me to enter. He looked like a Russell yet at the same time, I'd always knew him as the feral one.

"How many of you live here?" Allegra asked looking at Kassandra. Kassandra was silent for a moment.

"Depends." She answered.

"How so?"

"What you mean. Vampires, never really counted. Humans, one."

"You host a human?" Allegra looked at Kassandra like she was a god.

"She's not food." Russell snarled at Allegra. She squinted her eyes in his direction.

"Speaking of food, Blythe, Elsie, join me in a hunt." Aurora grabbed Elsie and looked in my direction

"You're going after the humans in this time of day? They're all well asleep." Kassandra looked to Aurora.

"No, we hunt animals." I threw in gaining a look of disgust from Kassandra.

"Russell, please take care that Blythe and her… coven. Remain safe within the city limits and nearby wilderness."


	22. Hunting

He had taken the six of us-Edwin, Elsie, Christopher, Aurora, Solomon and I-out to a nearby wood and followed us out inside. He never trailed away from us and always looking intently at Elsie as she took down one of the smaller members of a caribou herd we were tracking. As she attacked, the herd dispersed causing the rest of us to race after the others.

"What does it taste like?" Russell asked looking at me as I veered left after another smaller member. "The animal blood."

"Well," I looked to him trying to think of the correct words. "It's… gritty yet it has some sense of purity. To some, it's not as delicious or as withstanding as human blood. It certainly has an acquired taste to it." I crouched down to get ready to pounce at one of the caribou in front of me grazing on a small patch of grass on the ground. Russell beat me to the punch and let his teeth sink into the beast's throat.

He remained there for a brief moment, letting the blood pool into his mouth. I watched him repel himself away from the animal with a look of complete horror on his face. I laughed a little at his quickness.

"I told you: it's an acquired taste." I laughed and finished it off. "The one thing that's great is that we can move from city to city with out being noticed and it'll sustain us for a few days but no where near as long as human blood." I wiped the area around my mouth clean of blood and looked to him.

"What do you prefer?" Russell asked motioning to the drained caribou.

"I haven't really thought about it I guess." I shrugged and began to play with a section of my curls. He stepped forward and grabbed a lock tossing it about between his fingers.

"Has your hair always been this long?" he asked looking from the lock being flipped in his hands to my eyes.

"Yeah." I nodded hearing his heartbeat faster.

"Blythe? Russell?" Christopher called. "I don't know about you, but we're gonna he—" he was muffled by something. Then I felt the soft sugary tingle.

_We were still in the wood, Russell and I, and the others had long gone. We'd continued walking, aimlessly. I tripped, his hand stretched out to grasp mine. Expecting to stop me from falling, we'd both rolled down a small hill and…_

I frowned as the vision was cut off. I clenched my fists and started walking. It was something I'd expected as of late. Yet at the same time, the frustration of being cut off too soon was over powering.

"Hey," He called behind me. "What's wrong?" It didn't take long for him to catch up to me.

"Nothing."

"Well, obviously there _is_ something wrong." He pestered me. Frustrated I miss stepped and he went out to grasp my hand. I wasn't sure if it was the angle or his own momentum but the two of us propelled forward tumbling down into a small ditch in a cloud of white. He'd landed to my right, having rolled away from the hill.

I had begun to laugh. I wasn't sure which I found funny: the fact that my vision was nearly perfect or the present. He'd laughed not long after me and it trailed off at a shorter time than my own.

"I haven't laughed like that in some time." He'd sighed.

"Same."

"You never did tell me what was on your mind." He rolled onto his side and looked at me from the perch on his hand.

"Well," I thought for a moment. "I can see into the future and—"

"I swear, I won't tell anyone." He held his free hand up.

I looked off into the distance, "Lately, everything's been… different."

"How so?"

"I start to see things then snap! I'm cut off." I sighed. "It gets frustrating when every time you have a vision you get cut off before the end."

He looked toward our feet then at the forest around us and finally back at me. "Everything will fall back into place." He smiled a little and I shrugged.

"So…" I turned toward him. "Do you have an ability?"

"Well," He was hesitant. "It's hard to explain." I frowned and looked up to the sky, hues of purple and pink were present.

"We'd better get heading back." I sat up and held my hand out for him to take.

"Thanks." He smiled and took my hand.


	23. Burn

We'd returned early in the morning to see a few more vampires present. Russell had mentioned that the vampires that had joined them were more drifters than anything and that they didn't stay for long. It wasn't until the sun erupted from the horizon that the smell of human was washed through all our nostrils. Allegra stiffened again.

The only human was a girl, no older than seventeen. She was quite pretty in a simple way. Her hair was a soft red that was tied back in an extremely messy bun. She emerged from one of the upstairs rooms in a pull over, sweats and a thin cane.

"Good morning Katrina." Kassandra called from a chair near a television. A muffled 'mhm' was present in the air as she made her way into a bathroom on the main floor. Aurora elbowed my side and motioned toward Christopher who gazed at Katrina as she made her way to the bathroom.

"My sister." Kassandra growled noticing the infatuated gaze coming from Christopher.

"Can I talk to you outside for a second?" Aurora squeezed my hand and Elsie's.

"I wouldn't go outside if I were you, you might burn up." Kassandra snapped.

"We'll be in the shade." Aurora smiled as the three of us stood up and stepped out.

"There's something wrong with—" Aurora stopped and winced as the skin that was exposed to the light began to boil.

"Get her out of the sun." Russell raced to our side and pulled Aurora into the building. "Kassandra!" Solomon raced to Aurora's side taking her unwounded hand in his own.

"Yes?" she looked at us rather amused and even kept the expression present in her voice.

"Get some bandages now." She slowly made her way to the bathroom and emerged with ace bandages.

"Can you also free up a bed for her?" She sighed and slowly made her way upstairs freeing up some space in a free room. Once Aurora was bandaged up, Russell carried her up the stairs to the room followed by Solomon, Elsie and I.

Kassandra glared at the weakened Aurora and then at the rest of us. Once she was on the bed, Solomon began to close the door.

"Leave us." Solomon said to Elsie and I closing the door completely once everyone was out of the room.


	24. Secrecy

In the several days after my vision, I had kept receiving odd looks from Christopher. Katrina would tap her way over to me and try to wring the information out of me. Daily I'd visit Aurora and, like clockwork, after three thirty pm she'd be there coaxing me out to interrogate me.

Today was different. Today, Luca was there to beat her to me. He slowly pulled me out of the room and into another down the hall. While in there Luca left the door open a crack and I heard Katrina's soft taps down the hall and other set of steps.

"Katrina, I think she went with Luca some where." Allegra's voice echoed to us and I felt Luca's hands slither over my mouth.

"Shh. Today will not be like any other." His thick accent breathed into my ear. I sat there unable to move, speak, and do anything for quite some time. Several times I felt the soft tickle of a vision but they all passed with out me seeing anything. Luca was using his ability to shield my visions, but why? Why was secrecy so important to them?

"She wants to be alone." He breathed again. Allegra. He was talking about Allegra. _Alone doing what?_ I asked him looking at his nose that was the only visible thing to me.

"In time, it will come to you in due time."


	25. Found

"Blythe," I heard Allegra call from down stairs. I smiled to Katrina who didn't notice the smile but returned it.

"I'm sure Christopher's looking for me." She removed herself from the bed she'd currently been sitting on and left the room, I not long trailing after her. We parted ways at the bottom of the stairs, she heading toward Christopher's arms as he returned from a hunt and I to Allegra who was currently sitting in the large makeshift living room.

"Yes, Allegra?"

"Let's go hunting." She stood up; her statement sounded more like an order than a request. I nodded and followed her out. We raced away from the decrepit building and into a forest. Her brown hair danced behind her like a curtain billowing in the wind.

She stopped suddenly to turn to face me. "What are we doing here?" I asked looking worriedly to Allegra.

"What do you know about the other members of the feral one's coven?" she let her fingers toss one of her curls around between them.

"His name is Russell. And just what they told us before: its just Russell, Kassandra, Katrina and a few stragglers." I answered with a shrug.

"What about your ability-reading friend. Simon was it?" She paced, turning her back away from me then toward me at the end. "Does he know if there are any abilities within them?"

"It's _Solomon_." I corrected her squeezing my forehead with my forefinger and thumb. Then it dawned on me. Did Solomon know if they had abilities? We all knew Russell was a Seer but were their other gifted members?

"I-I don't know I never really asked him." I looked at Allegra wide eyed. She was on to something. "Let's go ask him." I grabbed her wrist and began to move toward the decrepit building but she didn't budge.

"I don't trust them." She was steadfast. "Have you felt it? The uneasiness that remains in the building?"—I shook my head not knowing what she was talking about letting her scoff—"There's something _wrong_. Something that doesn't feel right. I know he's one of the only Seers out there, but there's something off. I have a bad feeling about this." I let her go and listened to her it wasn't until I heard 'seer' that I felt uneasy.

"What do you mean one of the only Seers?" I looked to her, my brow furrowing. Her face had a flash of shock then turned void of all emotion, something I remember seeing on Jane's in the first vision I had of Allegra. She sighed and her façade faded.

"Please don't be cross with me." She pleaded and sat on the ground. "I was apart of the Volturi. When I first joined to be specific. One of the missions they sent me on, to prove my worth, was to eradicate a coven of Seers." Her voice cracked. "It-it was one of the hardest things to do in my life. It was _the_ hardest thing to do."

"How many did you—"

"That was the first of two groups. After that, I asked Aro afterward to send me on other missions, to avoid Seers." She sobbed. "He didn't listen. He sent me on one other. It was the same one where I met Luca." She tried to smile but her lips trembled. "The second time was the hardest Luca was the only survivor. I hid him from Aro and the others. He was able to shield many of my emotions and our relationship from Aro. It wasn't until I found you again, that I decided I didn't need the Volturi. I didn't want to be associated with Volturi.

"I'm sorry to bring this upon you my sister." She stood up. "You'll have to be on the run for a very very long time. _We_ will." I pulled her into a hug yet I couldn't say I was sorry or that she was forgiven for how she was treated and how she treated others.

"You need to open up more." I said into her shoulder.

"So this is where you've been and who is this Luca?" It was a new voice one that made Allegra stiffen. She quickly turned around and hissed toward the new comer. He was a relatively handsome man with dirty brown hair and blazing red eyes. His gaze was first to Allegra then switched to me then back to Allegra. Allegra pushed me behind her and hissed defensively at him.

"Get back to the building tell the others." She snarled before lunging toward him. The two began to tear and nip at one another. It appeared to be some new and beautiful yet morbid dance.

"NOW!" she hollered forcing me to bolt toward the building. I forced open the door sending it clear off its hinges.

"What have you done you foolish girl!" Kassandra howled looking at the nearly broken door.

"We've been found. The Volturi are here." I spoke so quickly that I was amazed that anyone knew what I was talking about.

"I'll go tell Aurora and Solomon." Elsie looked at me wide eyed and bounded up the stairs three at a time. Not long after, the three of them escaped the room up stairs, Aurora wrapped in a blanket and being carried by Solomon.

"Who are the Volturi?" Kassandra crossed her arms over her chest making us all slow down.

"They're the police of vampires." I used the old term that Emily coined. It struck a nerve in all of us. The thoughts and memories of our former leader flooded our minds.

"We can handle them." Kassandra looked to Russell leaning toward his hand. I felt a tinge of jealousy as she grabbed his hand and stroked the soft skin on the back of his palm.


	26. Luca

It was hard to believe that they had found us. We were supposed to be hidden by both Luca _and_ Russell. How did this happen?

"Where's Luca?" I looked to Kassandra. Her brow furrowed.

"I have no idea who you're talking about." She answered.

"Yes you do." Aurora's voice broke through the blanket.

"Oh, the boy with the Italian accent?" she asked quite innocently but her eyes said otherwise.

"Yes." Aurora pushed herself out of the blanket and Solomon's arms. Her skin, once beautiful, was now almost seventy-five percent covered in scars coming from the day we opted to step out of the boundaries of the building and into the sunlight.

"Where is he?" she snarled. "He needs to be protected along with Russell."

"Why does he matter?" She snarled back.

"They are here and they will _kill _them." She growled and I saw Kassandra stiffen. Aurora stepped forward and closer to Kassandra than they both wanted. I saw her lips move but the words escaping her mouth were not audible. She then stepped away from Kassandra. It looked like Kassandra was contemplating something.

"He's with one of the drifters behind that door." She nodded her head to a metal door on the first floor.

"Elsie, Edwin, Blythe Christopher, go get him." She gripped Solomon like a crutch. I looked worriedly back to her then progressed to the door where Luca was currently playing a game of poker with two males. The first looked rather scruffy and the immortality made his appearance look that much nicer. The second was rather attractive yet he had a pompous air about him.

"Is everything alright?" he looked up from the game

"Allegra…" I said and his face went slack. The then progressed to say something in Italian while he hastily stood up and pushed his way to us and passed us. He was in a mad dash to the doors and he disregarded the several hands reaching to grab him.

I felt a vision coming along and it hit me like a bullet. _The man that was currently outside with Allegra was coming in and in one of his hands was a weakened Allegra. He dragged her into the decrepit building and tore her a part in front of us then began to attack Russell and—_

I was torn away from the vision. I looked to Luca who had stopped in his tracks. I looked into his hard dark eyes. He shifted his jaw and I noticed his lip tremble.

"Luca, they're here. The people who sent her to you." I pleaded causing him to stop.

"How do you know that?" he demanded.

"I—" I didn't know what to say.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT?" he shouted. His voice broke. He needed her. I envied them. I wanted someone to act this way for me. To protect me. To love me.

"How do you know that?" he asked again taking a long step toward me. His face was so close to mine I could feel and smell the hot sweet breath that escaped from between his lips. I opened my mouth but words could not escape them.

His mouth turned into a snarl and his palms snapped to my temples; his fingers wrapping themselves in my hair. I felt the full wave of his ability. It was something like Aros, reading the mind of someone through touch with one difference: an immense and crippling pain.

When he went through each and every memory, it was like he was scraping away at my memories and brain with a sharpened ice-cream scoop. I dropped to my knees, my legs unable to hold my body currently shaking in agony. At last I felt him move to the things I tried to lock away from everyone—including myself.

I heard Aurora gasp as she, too, saw these thoughts for what sounded like the first time: envy toward everyone else. Always happy. Always with someone. Never lonely. They never spent more than a century with out someone. My own sister, the vision of perfection, was even with someone. Someone who was willing to protect someone. My coven, for as long as I had known them, had never been alone. Russell. He even had someone. He had Kassandra.

Loneliness. Unbearable loneliness that matched the pain from Luca's hold against my scalp. I didn't want to live with it anymore.

At last, with trembling hands, Luca let me go. His breath was short and he stepped away from me.

"I-I'm sorry." He breathed. He sounded like he wasn't in front of me, more like he was in a different room hidden behind a door. All I knew was that I wanted to cry. I felt my heart breaking as I sat on the floor. I rested my head in my hands and sobbed.


	27. Immobile

In the moments following the experience of Luca's ability, my world was like a blur of colors. Nothing I looked at registered. I was broken. The thoughts that Luca resurfaced wouldn't return to the place they had came from, the place at the very back of my mind. Whenever people spoke it felt like I was in a different room listening through the walls.

I knew I was moving but it wasn't me moving for me. Someone was holding me. Normally I would look but the trance I was kept in stopped me.

"Blythe." I heard a 'new' voice. "Blythe." Allegra was calling me but I couldn't think of anything. The anguish it wouldn't dissipate.

"What happened?" Allegra's voice was getting fainter.

"Luca…" Aurora's voice was even more so. I felt someone stroke my hair.

"What did you do?" Allegra chimed in.

"I-I didn't mean to," Luca began. "She started talking about you and… I couldn't help myself."

"You told me you could control it." Allegra growled.

"She talked about my coven…"

"So you break her?" Allegra snapped. "Her trying to help you is enough for you to break her." Broken.

"I-"

"Allegra," It was Aurora. "You didn't stop him for long. We have to keep going. We have to do this at another time." I felt the snow crunch and whoever was stroking my hair ceased doing so.

"No, I'll get her." Allegra snapped at someone and I was lifted up off the ground. "You're going to fix her, Luca." We were moving again and I felt a vision.

_We were returning to the Western Hemisphere via a ship that was moving between Russia and Alaska. The Cullens were going to meet us. There was something off though. We gained—_

I was cut off again. The pain from before was nothing like it was now. It knocked all the wind from me I wanted to writhe on the ground scream anything but it was as if I couldn't control anything.

"Don't stop her visions." Aurora chimed in. "It does more harm than good."

"It's okay, Bee." I barely heard Allegra. "I'll protect you."

We stopped again in another building. It wasn't until I was set down that I realized we were in a hotel. I felt someone stroking my head and I tried in vain to move but the out of body feeling was still in place.

"Fix her. Now." Allegra came in loud and clear. I saw Luca kneel down to my level and place both hands on my head. In what felt like an instant, I pinned him against a mirror. Shattering it against his head. A fierce growl erupted from my mouth and, from what I can see in the cracked glass, my eyes were a deep black.

"Blythe." Elsie spoke up and I felt two sets of hands on my arms. Elsie and Aurora. No matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't speak. To explain everything, my mouth wouldn't move from its clenched position. I let go of Luca and moved to one of the beds, not looking at anyone. I couldn't, not after what he did and what I did.

"Let him go and think it," Aurora began. "I'll translate."

_I can't._

"Try." Aurora sat down next to me. I looked to the door and to everyone else. We were all there: everyone who escaped from the Volturi's henchmen. Russell was looking at me intently and Kassandra let her hand brush against his arm making him look at her.

_Make them leave._ I nodded my head toward Kassandra and Russell. For some reason, I couldn't look at them. I didn't want to see them and have them hear what was going on inside my head.

"I'm sorry but could you please excuse us?" Aurora tossed a smile at them.

"Us?" Kassandra looked astonished feeling left out of our discussion.

"Yes, this is for Lawrence members only." Aurora answered and, with a scoff Kassandra led her sister and Russell out of the room slamming the door as she did so.

_Why Lawrence? Why not Abbot or Smith? _It was weird. Them using my name I was 'Ives' for the majority of my life. It also didn't seem fair, having my name when I was actually the youngest.

I heard her laugh. "She wants to know why we chose her name and not someone elses."

"It seems a fitting name." Elsie stated. "I never remembered being a 'Smith' nor do many of us remember our surnames anymore." She shook her head. Her black locks shaking with her.

_But I-._

"Enough." Aurora smiled. "You're humility is something left for angels. Let's get down to business." I knew what she was talking about.

_You know. You've seen it. All of it. More than anyone should._ I then looked up to Luca then back down to something else._ I…I can't stand it. _She translated that last bit but nothing before.

"Can't stand what?" I heard someone ask.

_Being alone._ I heard Aurora she was now working as a medium for both of us. _I'm the only one._ I looked to Chirstopher. _You and Katrina are going to be together._

"No we're—" Aurora and I cut him off.

_Bull shit. I see the way you look at her. Treat her. The way you two act around one another._ I smiled._ I've seen you two together. She'll be like us. Immortal._

"Russell?" Luca offered and I shook my head.

_He's with Kass—_I was cut off by a slap. Aurora, through burns, worked up the strength to slap me. It sounded like marble.

"If only you knew what she's doing." Aurora growled and winced as her burns grew worse. "Just try to look. Luca, act as a barrier and stop who ever will try to rip her away again."

"Look. For yourself, please."

I closed my eyes and waited. Waited for that vision to come.


	28. The Vision

_What I saw wasn't what followed the initial vision. There was no boat. My coven was running this time. It was as if everything was reversed. Aurora was scar and burn free. Yet, time wasn't reverted. Allegra and Luca weren't there running along side my adoptive family. Katrina was there. A vision of beauty in her new form. Christopher was holding a wrapped bundle in his arms. It was the size and shape of a human. _

_They were meeting someone in Europe. The Cullens. My coven called on a special reunion but it wasn't happy. Something was wrong. Not as it should be. When they reached a castle in Romania, they were greeted by Carlisle who quickly ushered them into the castle._

_Carlisle grabbed the human-shaped package that Christopher was carrying and laid it down on a bed of silk. He removed the wrappings and revealed what he was carrying._

_Me. But it wasn't _me_. My skin wasn't the glittering ivory. It was a sickly pale color reserved for ill humans. I opened my eyes and it was something I hadn't seen in nearly a century: my irises were the magnificent blue that were replaced by red and, later gold._

I hesitantly opened my eyes. I would be human again.

"How is that possible?" I heard my voice hesitate. It didn't sound like me. I looked around they looked at me intently save Luca who was gasping for breath. His eyes a deep black, he was hungry and looked exhausted.

"I don't know either." Aurora mentioned.

"What? What happened?" Allegra asked moving down to her knees to look at me.

"We're on the run again. Someone notified the Cullens and we will meet them in Romania. I… I become human."


	29. The Message

In the days following my vision, Allegra and Aurora spent as much time with me as possible. It was like she treated our last moments like I was dying. Luca was uncomfortable as he stood with us, from what emotions plagued his face, he was still exhausted despite his hunts and, from the curt hushed conversations he and Allegra shared, he didn't 'fix' me.

The hotel, I later found out, was in Novgorod and we had arrived nearly two days after the Volturi tracker found our hiding spot. We were in the far southern part of town and, despite outing Kassandra's lie, we remained indoors to prevent any sort of attention being drawn to us.

Russell was moving away from Kassandra in the days following my vision. Despite glares from Allegra, he tried to get closer to me. Regretfully, our conversations wouldn't last long due to Allegra treating him like a child trying to play a little too rough with a porcelain doll. It was as if Aurora, Allegra and inevitably Luca and Solomon were my bodyguards.

"Can I ask you something?" Russell's voice chimed in as I was looking out our third story window at the darkened city lights.

"Shoot." I didn't look away from the lights.

"What happened?" He looked at me drawing my attention. "The night we came here that is."

I opened my mouth and side-glanced to Allegra who's jaw shifted. "Nothing." I lied and offered him a reassuring smile. "We just talked about stuff." Solomon and Luca entered the room holding a few bags.

"But… you didn't speak when we were in the room last." His brow furrowed. Aurora looked to Russell then to Allegra. Her hand moved in a certain way as to allerg Allegra of something.

"I think that's enough." Allegra began.

"O-okay." Russell shifted awkwardly and exited the room.

"What?" I asked looking between Aurora and Allegra.

"Nothing. Nothing." Allegra shook her head. I pursed my lips and stormed from the room. I heard a few faint 'wait's as I left but they became muffled by the door slamming behind me. I walked down the hallway that, to an average human, looked like a sprint. I continued my speed until I noticed an envelope on the floor. I hastily picked it up and walked to a near by trash can. Before tossing it out, I noticed my name written in intricate handwriting. I stopped and turned it over looking for a sender. Nothing was there but a blood red blot of wax.

I hastily opened the envelope, tearing at the paper of the envelope as I did so. The letter inside looked to be made of fine paper that would only belong to someone of great wealth.

_Go to the warehouse on the north end at midnight._

_Come alone or not at all. All will be revealed._

It wasn't signed and sadly, it wasn't personalized and, therefore, I couldn't tell who it belonged to. I turned it over in my hands looking for any sort of signature. The only thing I found was a map on the opposite side of the message.


	30. Allegra part I

"Wait." Aurora and I shouted as my sister stormed from the room.

"Keep an eye on her, Aurora." I turned to her. She nodded and we sat in the room bringing up some sort of conversation—all of which I didn't pay attention to. My sister was the main target and Aurora was my only link to her.

"Something's not right." Aurora began after about an hour. "I can barely hear her thoughts." We all looked to her.

"What do you mean, Aurora?" I asked Luca coming to my side.

"She's moved away from the hotel. She isn't even near the hotel anymore." She pressed her fingers to her temples and winced.

"Where could she have gone?" Elsie asked and looked to me.

"Something about…" She strained to hear her but she couldn't finish her sentence.

"Katrina's gone." Russell bolted into the room.

"What do you mean?" Christopher shot up from his perch.

"She's no where in the hotel."

"Allegra," Christopher looked to me. I sighed and bolted from the room. The others weren't far behind me. Their scent, especially Katrina's, wasn't hard to pick up. We raced as fast as we could we ended up running toward a decrepit warehouse. Only one person fancied these. Kassandra.


	31. The Warehouse

After reading the note left in the hall, I raced to the location indicated on the map and got to the point a few minutes after midnight. I entered the building and proceeded into the center of the hall. No one would care about my…

"You're late." I heard an all too familiar voice. Kassandra.

"I tried to get here as fast as I could." I have her a crooked smile.

"Right."

"So you're the one who wrote the—"

"Yes." She smiled. "I thought you might want to know why you've been in the dark for so long." Her smile grew and she looked just as menacing as Emily did.

"So, what was it that you wanted to reveal to me?"

"I know you and your coven want Russell."

"What?" I was speechless. "It'd be nice that he joined us but…"

"Oh shut it. It's clearly obvious with the way you look at him. He's meat to you."

"No he's—"

"You're friend, Christoph, wants my sister." She growled.

"She's his singer." I tried to reason with her but I only gained manic laughter.

"Singer. Right." She laughed more. "And I'm apart of the Volturi."

I stood where I was unsure of what to say or do. She took this as the opportunity to advance making me, by instinct, step back.

"You know, he and Luca are the last Seers?" She laughed again.

"The last?"

"Yes. That witch of a sister of yours executed them all." She became serious. "Now, I find that you and I can both have a Seer. You can have Luca and I can have Russell."

"But what if he…"

"They're mine." Kassandra advanced on me. "They aren't going anywhere you spoiled brat."

"Eventually, he's going to search for more of his own kind and Christopher won't go down with out a fight. You can't hold them forever."

"Oh. I know." She nodded. "She was the first human he saw. He's sweet on her. I know." She smiled, knowing that it struck a nerve with me. "I'm going to keep them with me for as long as possible. Turn her if I have to. But that will come later." I noticed her eyes change to black.

"What does any of this have to do with me?"

"Kassandra!" Katrina called from the door. She didn't have her cane or Christopher leading the way.

"Katrina, Stay where you are." Kassandra began but she was stubborn and stepped into the room. She tripped when she stepped into the room, which led her to feel her way around on the walls.

"Leave Blythe alone." Katrina's voice was strong, stronger than I've ever heard her.

"Stay out."

"NO!" she shouted again and her sister's eyes darkened. She lunged toward her sister, tossing her across the room like a child would toss a toy. She landed like a ragdoll and I could hear her rasping breathing and slowing heart beat.

"And stay out." She turned back to me. "Where were we? Oh yes." After I didn't say anything she proceeded toward me. I noticed her snap and my body became ridged. I couldn't move. When she was close enough to feel her breath on my face, she placed a hand on my face and I felt a strange warmth on my cheek.

"You see we're different." She plunged her free hand into my abdomin.


	32. Human

She looked at her hand that was still in my abdomen. "But I'm sure you knew that. Did it ever occur to you how I survive?"

"You drink—"

"Human blood?" she laughed. "How do you think a human can survive amongst non-vegan vampires? I don feed off of humans or beast for that matter. They're tainted: animals by dirt and humans by drugs. No. I like things untainted." She removed her hand from my abdomen and looked at the sticky liquid there.

"You've found a new way?"

"I guess you can call it that." She then let her finger drift to her mouth taking in the venom present.

"H-how?"

"One of my many things I can do is manipulate physical health. For example, I can make your skin rot—" Aurora's burns appeared into my mind "—or I could convert you back to your human state." She grinned.

"How d—"

"I found my abilities from my mate. He, god rest his soul, had an ability too and took great interest in other abilities. He had me practice what I could do on him and turned him into a human. I found I couldn't return him to a vampire so I tried giving the man immortality. I guess you could say I was overzealous. Vampire turned human is quite delicious.

"When I'd drained him I found something new: I took my mate's power as well. His ability, mind control, wasn't the only ability I 'absorbed.' Hell, I'm using his former ability as we speak." She scoffed. "I can also see abilities, read minds. I'm almost like the Swiss army knife of vampires and soon I'll be more power full than your Volturi."

"Why me?"

"I'd be able to have my own connection to the future. And eventually, Russell's power." She smiled. The only reason why she kept us locked up was to corral us.

"Well, well. You are quite the slow one. Aurora saw my plans straight away. Luckily I had a tight enough leash on Russell like he oddly did for you." She growled and I tried to twist myself from her mental grasp.

"Not so fast." The hand on my face burned as the wound on my stomach healed yet something else happened. For the first time in almost a century, I felt heat flood my body.

"Why didin't you heal Katrina? Make her see? Make her like you." I looked at Kassandra. In my eyes, everything was dull no where near as vibrant as she was before she turned time back.

She didn't answer for a long time. "I was waiting for the opportune moment. Sadly it seems like it won't ever appear." She grabbed my leg and tossed me toward Katrina. I landed just in front of her and slid to where I was right next to her. As I landed, I heard a snap then a felt a searing pain rush up my leg and body.

"Katrina," I placed my hand on hers. "Are you alright?" my voice was shaking and I could hear labored breathing. She was giving up…

"Think of Chris." I whispered. "He'll be here soon."

"What makes you think he's still alive?" Kassandra drew near me grabbing tightly on my wrist and wrenching me free from grasping Katrina's hand. Her teeth grazed against the palm of my hand but she was ripped away from my arm as my coven and Russell raced into the room. Allegra pressed her against the wall.

"Tell them to release me, Russell." Kassandra ordered. "Or I'll kill her."

"Right." Allegra snarled and pressed tighter on her throat. Kassandra moved her hand and the hole that was once in my stomach opened a little. I screamed then looked to Katrina. Her shallow breathing was becoming more and more labored.

"Chirstopher, help her." I tried to say but all that emerged was blood so with a weak hand I motioned toward her. She shouldn't die. She barely lived.


	33. Aurora

Allegra held Kassandra to the wall and Blythe screamed as her stomach ripped open. She tried saying something and I searched her thoughts but I was at an impasse. It wasn't until she moved her hand that I noticed what she was trying to say.

"Chris, Turn Katrina."

"What? Why?"

"She's dying do it. Now." I pushed him toward her and he bent down to her. she barely moved to acknowledge him.

"I'll make everything better." He said bending toward her neck, letting his fangs sink into her neck. She made a strange guttural noise and stayed silent. I heard her heart go into over time. The venom was talking affect I could hear her thoughts.

_It burned. She wanted him to cradle her. She wanted him to make the pain stop._ Even though Christopher couldn't hear her thoughts he remained near both of them: Katrina with the venom and Blythe with the open wound in her abdomen. Russell put a reassuring hand on Christopher.

"Allegra," I called. "She doesn't have much time." Russell approached Kassandra and Allegra.

"Let her go." He said and Allegra glared at him.

"She loved you, you know? Blythe. She was going to _kill_ Blythe and you. I can't let her do that."

"Let her go." Russell barked, ripping Allegra away from Kassandra and, in the process, tore off Kassandra's right hand. She screamed in agony and raced to grab it back but Russell crushed it before she could stop him.

"Heal them. Now."

"I can't with out my-" She whimpered. I'd never seen her like this. She was like a child.

"She's lying." I cut her off by reading her mind. She was. She could do it. She knew she could she just wanted this to be her last stand against death. He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her with a brute strength that matched Christopher's then I saw what his ability was.

"Heal. Them." He said one more time and she moved over to us resting her only hand on my cheek. The burn marks that she placed on my body melted away. I felt a warm sensation and he pulled her hand away from my face.

"Keep her a vampire." He growled. She sniffed and moved to Blythe healing her enough to stop the bleeding but nothing more.

"That's all I can do." _With out killing myself._ She added mentally most likely still unaware that I had tapped into her mind

"You're useless then. Get out." He motioned to the door and she took ticket as her only shot to freedom. "Let's get her to a hospital." He ordered and picked her up.

"I'll remain here with Katrina." Christopher began.

"I'll do the same." Solomon looked to me. "She's our new sister. She should be welcomed by as many people as possible."

"We'll meet you there as soon as possible." Edwin looked to us standing next to Christopher with Solomon. Elsie nodded toward him and joined Allegra, Luca, Russell and myself.

We raced to a nearby hospital with barely enough time. Blythe was bleeding all over the place and the doctors hopped on the body making sure to fix her more than Kassandra was able to.

We remained in the sitting room as we waited for her body to return from surgery. Allegra was pacing the room as we waited. It was clearly obvious that she worried deeply about her sister. We all were. She was one of us and so were the new honorary members we acquired over the following six months.

"I want to find more like me." Russell spoke up after a long silence. Luca and Allegra looked to him.

"You're not going alone." Luca mentioned looking to Allegra who, in turn, looked to me. Her face was pained and her thoughts told of her constant change: join what would possibly be the last two Seers or stay to ensure her sister's safety.

"They need a protector." I smiled. "Don't worry. I'll tell her you're sorry and that you'll be back soon." After a long pause she smiled.

"Thank you." She hugged me before leaving Elsie and I alone in the hospital waiting room.


	34. Fields of Peonies

When I woke, I wasn't in a derelict building where I last remembered being. It was a field and I was surrounded in magnificent armies of various colored flowers.

"_Where am I?" _I said at last bending down to pick up a bloom.

"You are standing in a field of peonies." A voice echoed. I turned to look at whoever spoke but saw no one.

"_Who's there?"_ I asked again.

"My name is Anumesh." There was the voice again but it didn't echo and it sounded close. I turned to look at this Anumesh. He was rather short. Reaching only to my waist. His head was bald, shaved clean of all hair. His feet and hands were bare and only a small space where his eyes and the bridge of his nose was visible; the rest of his body was hidden behind thick white cloth. His skin, from what little was visible, was the color of desert sand and his eyes reminded me of ice.

"_Anumesh."_ I said his name and he answered with a brief nod.

"I have been watching you for some time now." The accent in his voice was something I had never heard before in all my coven's travels to find the Cullens and, eventually, Russell and his coven. He sounded ancient and his garb also hinted it as well.

"_You have?"_ I said quizzically.

"Yes. You are special."

"I only wish I knew that before hand." I heard another voice. A voice I knew and remembered all to well. I slowly turned to face Emily. She wasn't in the clothing I remembered seeing her in. It was a plain white dress that fell to her knees. It was loose on her body and from her hips down the skirt ruffled in several layers to the bottom.

I gasped and made a break to run but Anumesh was blocking my way. "I'm not here to kill you if that's what you think." Emily said again. I turned back toward her and saw something different about her. Her eyes weren't red, they were a sweet honey brown color.

"_How-?"_ I was cut off before I could finish my sentence.

"You're waking up." Emily smiled. "Tell the coven I said 'hello.'"


	35. Blue Hour

Emily was right. I had begun to rouse not long after she said I would. I had awoken to a vision of a bedchamber from one of Shakespeare's plays. It was empty save for one person. Alice.

"I was beginning to wonder when you would wake up." She said in her pixie-like voice. "You've been asleep for a few days." She gave me a small smile.

"Where am I?" I asked, looking around the room.

"A friend of my coven's home." She answered.

"Where is everyone?"

"Your coven? The majority are out on a hunt." She answered and I gave her a questioning look. "There are a few who didn't come. Aurora mentioned they were looking for others." I nodded unsure of what else to say. I then noticed that I was wearing something completely different than what I remembered. It resembled the dress Emily wore with the exception that my dress was satin-like. I didn't even have to ask.

"I took liberty of changing you out of the hospital's gown." She answered and moved uncomfortably close to me to ask in a tone barely audible. "What's it like being human again?"

I opened my mouth repeatedly trying to think of a way to answer her when Carlisle interrupted us. "Alice, may you step outside please?" she left Carlisle and I alone after looking back at me while slipping through the door.

"How are you feeling?" his voice was soft and smooth. I wasn't entirely sure how I would answer. I spent nearly a century as a vampire and now, I was sitting in front of him as a human.

"How would you feel if you were in my shoes?" I looked hard at him. "For the first time in nearly a century, I'm squishy." He laughed a bit at my last comment.

"May I then?" he asked before inspecting me. He checked my breathing, if I was ill, and lastly my heart beat. He made a strange face that quickly washed away. He left me shortly after and I slipped from my bed then moved toward one if the windows to the east of the room.

The sky was a dim blue colour and the horizon was beginning to cast pinks and purples across the sky. I heard a soft rasp at my door and chose to ignore it. I wanted to be alone. In the soft light, I thought I saw Russell and Luca and Allegra. I poked my head toward the door to only see Esme, Emmett and one other vampire racing off into the distance. My shoulders drooped. I turned away from the window and skid down the wall to the floor.

"Blythe?" I heard Aurora after she stepped into the room. "Are you alright?" I looked at her as she tried to read me. I knew she wouldn't be able to and so did she.

"As good as I can be." I admitted and she frowned finally admitting that she couldn't read my thoughts.


	36. Request

Days have gone by since I had awoken. I met the 'friends of the Cullens' that Alice had talked about. Their names were Stefan and Vladimir. They were paler than I had believed most vampires to be.

In the days following, I tried to revert to 'human life' as the others had all mentioned me to do. It was harder than they thought. Sleeping was easy but I was never that hungry. Instead of feeling 'full' by the end of the day, I felt stuffed. Not stuffed after a holiday meal stuffed. Stuffed like someone was continuously cramming food down my throat. Eventually, I stopped eating.

And I wanted to see Anumesh again. I wanted to know what was going on. I wanted to ask him so many questions. Whenever I drifted off, I wished with all my might that he would be there in my dreams to answer my questions.

After a week went by I stopped Carlisle in the library. "Hey, Blythe." He smiled kindly.

"Carlisle, can I talk to you?" I asked and glanced around the room. Both of our covens were there and, even though I was human, I caught them stiffen to listen in on us.

"Alone?" I added and we left the room to my own. I had to ask if he had ever heard of Anumesh.

"I need you to do me a favour." I said once the door was closed. I knew we were still in relative earshot of our covens so I pulled out a sheet of paper and a pen.

"Okay…?" He looked at me curiously watching me write down the message I wanted to pass on to him.

_Do you know someone by the name '_Anumesh?'

"No." He shook his head his look was still curious then it dawned on him. "Do you want me to look into it?" he smiled.

"Please."

"I'll see what I can do."


	37. Halfbreed

It seemed like months had gone by but it was only a few days. Carlisle came back with absolutely nothing. Whoever Anumesh was, I wasn't going to find anything on him in any text. This was driving me absolutely insane.

I still continued to try to see him in my dreams but my efforts were in vain. It was as if he was behind a brick wall… Much like Luca and Russell.

"Your face will stay like that if you hold it any longer." It was Rosalie. She sat down across the table from me holding a mug of tea, which she passed over to me. I laughed a little thinking of my sister.

"Rose," I began. "Do you ever regret being a vampire?" I looked up and saw her face became hard.

"I didn't have a choice becoming a vampire or not." She answered bluntly. "And I envy you." I looked away. In all honesty, I found it selfish that I was, in a way, throwing my new found 'humanity' in Rosalie's face. The fact that I-a vampire decades older than she-was human. It was something she always wanted.

"Maybe," I began. "We can find the one who did this and have her do it to you?" I offered. For all I knew, Kassandra could still be out there and I felt like I owed the woman something.

"You don't need to do that." She smirked and stood up to leave. "Now drink your tea. There's someone who wants to meet you." My brow furrowed. I met just about everyone except…

"Renesmee?" I asked making her stop to look at me.

"And Jacob." She added and she turned back, continuing to leave me in the soon-to-be empty kitchen. I wasn't sure how to react. I was excited to meet the half breed and the shape-shifter that visited my visions yet at the same time I was anxious. I was so caught up in my reverie that I barely heard the door open but I most certainly heard it shut. My head snapped in the direction of a girl. She looked no more than thirteen and moved daintily toward me until we were nearly touching.

"Renesmee," I said before her hand reached out and touched my cheek. I kept eye contact with her and her face distorted some.

"You can try all you want, but it's impossible." Aurora stepped into the room. "There's only one person who can access her mind and he isn't here." She started to walk over to Aurora. "His name is Luca." She answered for the little girl.

"Who is Luca to you?" she asked after turning back to look at me.

"My sister's mate." I answered.

"Why can only he access you?" her brow furrowed.

"You'll have to see it to believe it." I answered.

"Jacob," Aurora poked her head out of the door. "They're in here." A boy joined Aurora, Renesmee and I.

"Hello, Jake." I smiled.

"Blythe." He bowed his head in acknowledgement. Renesmee moved to him and I saw a few more people-three boys and a girl-enter and Aurora cross the room to sit across from me at the table.

"This is Seth, Embry, Quill, and Leah" Jake proceeded to introduce the members of his pack, motioning to each as he said their names.

"How do you like being squishy again?" One of the boys, Quill, joked.

"It's still a bit of a shock." I answered. _It's like having something torn away from you forever._ I added mentally and felt a strange sensation against my cheek. My hand snapped up to wipe whatever it was away. I looked to my wet fingers and I realized what it was. A tear.

I smiled. "I'm crying." I felt more falling. I had mixed feelings: I wasn't sure if I should be happy that this is happening or continue to wallow in my own self pity. I wanted Allegra. I wanted my sister.

I felt a cold hand on my shoulder. Aurora was still sitting next to me. She smiled weakly as if letting me know that I'm going to be okay.


	38. Apologies

We had been in the castle of Vladimir and Stefan for nearly a month and I hadn't heard word from Allegra or our Seers. I knew that my chances of hearing from my sister and the others were pretty slim but I still wanted to know if they were all still alive. I had several inklings that they were okay when I did think of them but it wasn't enough to secure that they were 'okay.'

I also had begun to feel remorse for my actions. I had been acting like a—for lack of a better word—bitch and had went around my coven's back to attempt to find information on a person who didn't exist. I was acting terrible and ungrateful to the people who saved my life and took care of me.

"You okay?" Aurora asked me one day. I had been picking at my food—more so than usual.

"Just worried about Allegra and the Seers," I admitted. "And I'm sorry."

"For?"

"Acting like her." I answered. It was silent for a moment but she smiled a small smile that said _'I forgive you.'_ I also knew that, at that moment, I would come clean.

"I saw her." I blurted out. "When I was still unconscious, I dreamed that I was in a field of peonies. Emily was there. She looked normal… well, more human than vampire." I clarified. "She wanted me to tell the coven 'hello.'"

She was silent and I continued. "She wasn't alone—in this field of peonies. There was a man there by the name of Anumesh. I tried to get some information on him and it failed…"

"So that was what Carlisle was trying to hide." She said knowingly.

"He didn't hide it very well did he?"

"Edward caught wind of it before I did and then passed on the message to me." She shrugged.

"I asked him to look into this 'Anumesh' and—as I mentioned before—it was to no avail."

"Maybe he's a figment of your imagination?" Aurora offered as Alice stepped into the room. I saw a sliver of Carlisle's face before the door shut behind her.

"Blythe…" Her voice was hesitant and—after giving her an odd look—she continued. "The Volturi are coming. They found Kassandra and in turn… about you." I froze unable to speak.

"How long?" Aurora asked.

"About a week."


End file.
